About the book

There in only one thing that I can say about this book. Read it.  

How was the book?

A flight attendant called Bette Nash has served American Airlines for six decades. Her thing is that she just want’s to say ”Thanks” to the customer. She have found her why. Simon Sinek has dived into the why-question in this excellent book. Viktor Frankl goes deeper. He explains what is the meaning. And how one can identify the meaning.

This book has two totally different faces. The first part is where Frankl tells his personal history and especially about the years he spent in concentration camps. The second part is where he explains the essence of logotherapy. 

Although the book might be considered as a theoretical publication – it is not. On the contrary one feels alomost lured, because Frankl explains logotherapy in great scrutiny.        

What are the key learnings?

I suppose that this book has the essence of my book club. In a way we have dealt this topic numerous times.

Logotherapy is all about how man should a meaningful life. It’s not about analyzing you will or inner drives. It is about future and how the meaning should fulfill the patience. A patient in logotherapy will be ”confronted wit and reoriented toward the meaning of his life.” In logotherapy the primary motivational force is finding a meaning and the patient is assisted ”to find meaning in his life”.

Meaning in life can be discovered in three different ways:

·       ”by creating a work or doing a deed” for Frankl it was a manuscripct while he was in the concentration capm

·       ”by experiencing something or encountering someone” for example by loving another human being

·       ”by the attitude” that we have for example towards unavoidable suffering

But the meaning should be very concrete and ”down to earth”. Level of abstraction should minimal. By the way the cognition of the meaning can consist an ”aha” experience and understanding ”what can be done about a given situation”. 

Lack of meaning can lead to an existential distress. That state has many forms depending on the patient’s situation. One could be for example ”unemployment neurosis”. It is a state ”where people have enough to live by but nothing to live for; they have the means, but no meaning”. Or the existential vacuum which is boredom. Or the ”Sunday neurosis” when void fulfills the patient after busy work week.

Goes without saying that the questions are asked from the patient, not by the patient. He ”can only answer to life by answering for his own life”. Which brings us to another force or stepping stone of logotherapy – responsibleness. In that spirit Frankl suggests that we should build a Statue of Responsibilty, bacuse there is already the Statue of Liberty. Frankl states that man is always free. There is no pre-determined factors that make us live as we live. So the patient is always free to do what ever it takes and he only can take the responsibility.

The logotherapist assists the patient ”to see the world as it really is” by widening and broadening the view. The true meaning is discovered from the real world – not from the patients psyche or from within. And suffering is not necessary on finding the meaning.  

One obvious question is that what happens after the meaning is fulfilled. When the struggling for the worthwhile goal is over. What next?

There is no straight forward answer in the book, but Frankl suggest an analogy to a movie. A movie consist thousands of different pictures and sounds. Maybe the life of a man is not just one picture i.e. meaning. Maybe life it is a movie which is filled with thousands of pictures i.e. meanings.

How should we change according to the book?

Let’s avoid nothingbutness, because we are always something.

·       Man is capable of changing the world for better if possible, and of changing himself for the better if necessary.

Let’s avoid pan-determinism.

·       ”Man does not simply exist but always decides what his existence will be, what he will become in the next moment”.

Remove the cause.

·       If suffereing is unavoidable, remove the cause. ”Unnecessary suffering is masochistic rather than heroic”.

·       ”Priority stays with creatively changing the situation that causes us to suffer”.

·       ”Know-how to suffer, if need be”

Do not remove the assets from the past.

·       If you have possibilities in the future, you should gain access to realities in the past.

What should I personally do?

Be happy

·       ”One must have a reason to ”be happy”. Once the reason is found, however, one becomes happy automatically.”

·       Happiness gives to man the capability to cope with suffering.

Change

·       ”The world is in a bad state, but everything will become still worse unless each of does his best.”

Summary

The book in ”six” words – Happiness cannot be pursued; it must ensue.